Sponsors pulling out of pro cycling?

[saab2000]

Originally Posted by bikinchris

He isn't talking about TV revenue. We spectator the TdG several times and we drove from Louisiana and bought gas, food and hotel rooms. There were a good many spectators just like us from many states. The people freezing their butt at Hog Pen gap were there because they couldn't get up to the last climb. I met very few locals all of those years. At the ToC, there are more locals, but more spectators too.

I'd like nothing more than for races like the ToG to survive and thrive. I was just pointing out that I don't believe it even comes close to a Super Bowl, even before TV revenue, etc. A Super Bowl is a huge deal for a city.

The current ToC is likely the one race that has a chance to survive, for a while at least.

[93KgBike]

Originally Posted by fignon's barber

https://cyclingtips.com/2018/09/us-r...at-comes-next/

This was a clear-eyed even handed article and great re-post. Thanks.

I agree that Vaughters comments about American racing being on a different [lower] level are ironic. Like it or not, the US Postal/Discovery/Astana years proved what it takes to win in Europe; but it was also gross, and eventually it is boring.

The current state sports business-models world-wide is ripe for a bottom-up revision. And this does not have to exclude big commerce. It's not hard to invest in local economies and small communities [anybody remember the Miller PBA tour?] if you care about the local distributors/businesses.

America will have to go it's own way, I guess. But we are good at that, when we try.

My favorite paragraph is:

Compared to Europe, where road racing has deep history and bicycles are more commonly used as transportation, the US remains a nation of endurance cycling enthusiasts who appreciate road racing in the context of their own experience. The average American cyclist may not care who won at Redlands or Joe Martin, but perhaps recognizes and wants to compete in mass-start events such as Dirty Kanza, Crusher in the Tushar, the Belgian Waffle Ride, or one of the many Leadville-branded events... Winning pro-only road races is always a good thing for riders and teams, but what it means to be a successful, sustainable pro cycling team in the United States in 2018 is changing, and rapidly... Americans will continue riding and racing bicycles, but the traditional road racing format may not prove to be a model with lasting power in the US. The United States will still produce riders into the WorldTour, but their path to the podium will likely look very different than it has in the past.

US road racing is in a downward spiral — what comes next?
by Neal Rogers. September 29, 2018

[gemship]

Originally Posted by Bruce K

Gemship - Gloucester is one of the most expensive of all the cross races in the Northeast (along with KMC an event that is in pretty bad shape) but it is a tradition and part of the Vittoria series.

Not everyone who races cross is rich but owning the most up to date equipment is expensive, just like any other sport or pastime.

People manage to race cross races because they are fun and they do it on a budget with older equipment at smaller events that cost less.

Adventure events play to that market as well but, like cross, the time to train has a cost, the travel has a cost, a dedicated gravel bike has a cost. Or, you can "run what you brung" and have fun.

It's about the choices folks make for their recreation.

But you are also comparing mostly amateur/age group racers against pros who are trying to make a living at this.

If pro cycling went away today, the amateurs side would continue to thrive in cyclocross and adventure riding.

And we haven't even started to talk about mountain bikes....

BK

Hi Bruce, well put. Not sure I really added much to this discussion specifically. I will say that I am just amazed at how awesome that racing course is, laid out this year! It looked inviting and I feel guilty not doing it as it's local. Definitely get a sense that if I did commit$$ to it with a bike like I did years ago buying an ultralight roadbike that frankly I don't really wanna ride, there's certainly a welcoming invite to race along side the elite. You gotta love that. I did splurge on a full suspension mtn. bike earlier this year and taking advantage of the West Gloucester woods. Specifically Bruce and Tom's off of old Thompson Rd. right up the street from me as well as a host of trails on the Greenbelt Land Trust. Yeah it's expensive for sure but I love the bike when I ride it and the trails. I can't roll over everything as it's too challenging at this point but it's a great experience. I have been to Willowdale twice as well and that's a whole lot more fast and flowy. We got some nice mtn. bike riding.

[spoonrobot]

Originally Posted by fignon's barber

https://cyclingtips.com/2018/09/us-r...at-comes-next/


Apparently, the CEO of USAC says he has no control over the growth or decline of cycling in the US. And the only way to save pro cycling in the US is for the pro teams to show up at gran fondos and Dirty Kanza and crush the amateurs.
……..Yep, it's doomed.

That is a very interesting article.

The main theme seems to be that pro cycling in the USA is raging ahead as a top-down money maker and that is only hastening the slow decline after losing the main superstar that spurned a massive rise in popularity.

That is, success in Europe will beget success and $$$ domestically which will entice a larger athlete pool, for males. This is proving to be exactly backwards. Instead, the solution and way forward to success appears to be staring them in the face:

“Just look at how many male athletes we have participating in the sport relative to the rest of the world. Why should the United States be at the top of the world when you compare how many young males take up the sport versus take up the sport in other countries around the world? Whereas on the women’s side, with Title IX and America’s greater acceptance of female athletics, we actually have a pretty deep talent pool versus the rest of the world. And lo and behold, we consistently do very well internationally.

Athletes need to be attracted at a young age and developed, this costs significant effort and $$$ but has shown success everywhere it's been done. Which is quite a 'duh' statement but it's flying over quite few heads.

Wasn't it the UK track cycling program that was running around early 2000s with a Wattbike screening hundreds of elementary/middle school age children for development? The best athletes in american cycling are the ones who somehow managed to not get grabbed away by the dozens of other sports that have more money, a better organizing federation and strong pipeline from amateur junior to successful professional.

Just expecting a genetic miracle to come along and pull in a huge amount of success is a losing proposition, as we are seeing.

[peanutgallery]

Duuude!

He was a domestic pro for a good 10 years and certainly dropped my bony azz. He may be the wrong person to lead USAC.. but he was the real deal when he pedaled in anger. In fact, he wasn't too shabby

Agree about Drapac doing the campground circuit

Originally Posted by CunegoFan

That was a really good article. Bouchard-Hall is a doofus. Rich guy who pretended to be a pro cyclist. USAC has about as much relevance to road cycling as IMBA has to mountain biking. Maybe that's a bit harsh; USAC has yet to stab its members in the back like IMBA did.

The Vaughters-Rapha plan seems to be having pro riders do participation events so the riders can build their brand on Instagram and what not. Why would I want to watch a Youtube channel by Joe Dombrowski instead of Seth's Bike Hacks or BKXC?

[steelbikerider]

I think racing sports in general are suffering. Attendence is way down at NASCAR, Indycar is just OK and I don't really know F1. They all seem to have a similar financial model to bike racing. Teams get a race license, get sponsors to pay big bucks and the ruling organization keeps everything.

Even the NFL and MLB have lower ratings than before and lots of empty seats.

I feel that most people don't have the patience to see a race or game develop and understand how strategies evolve to create a win and the TV networks don't want to show enough of an event for viewer to get caught up in it. Instead it's all personality driven coverage.

[Heisenberg]

ANECDOTALMARKETRESEARCHTIME

me: millennial. don't watch sports. sometimes bike racing. a little. but only because i was once a bike rider. my friends: mostly millennials. don't watch sports with regularity. mostly. maybe a little ufc, a touch of foozeball, maybe the basketball team when it's at the end of the playoffs.

cultural bubbles are more defined now. many young peoples are in a certain bubble. sports have an ultrabro visage that doesn't jive with the bubble. you get where i'm going here. if anything, it's an opp for cycling, if it weren't so ****ing archaic.

more netflix climbing films, please.

[livingminimal]

Originally Posted by Heisenberg

ANECDOTALMARKETRESEARCHTIME

me: millennial. don't watch sports. sometimes bike racing. a little. but only because i was once a bike rider. my friends: mostly millennials. don't watch sports with regularity. mostly. maybe a little ufc, a touch of foozeball, maybe the basketball team when it's at the end of the playoffs.

cultural bubbles are more defined now. many young peoples are in a certain bubble. sports have an ultrabro visage that doesn't jive with the bubble. you get where i'm going here. if anything, it's an opp for cycling, if it weren't so ****ing archaic.

more netflix climbing films, please.

This dude pretty much summed it up.

The world's changing.

[bicycletricycle]

I think it can have a nice bounce off of the bottom with some luck. Lots of interesting stories to tell and beautiful scenery.

[livingminimal]

Originally Posted by bicycletricycle

I think it can have a nice bounce off of the bottom with some luck. Lots of interesting stories to tell and beautiful scenery.

Yep. Might actually be a lot more interesting than what's currently happening in most of domestic racing.